Jennifer Becker

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Associate Professor, Civil and Environmental Engineering

PhD, Northwestern University

Biography

Dr. Jennifer Becker joined the Civil and Environmental Engineering faculty as an Associate Professor in January, 2010. Her area of research and teaching interests focus on biological treatment processes in environmental engineering. Specifically, her research interests include: the biodegradation, microbial ecology, and bioremediation of chlorinated organic groundwater contaminants; bioenergy production using microbial processes; and the recovery and reuse of agricultural, municipal, and industrial waste products. Dr. Becker teaches classes in the area of environmental engineering including water and wastewater treatment (ENVE4508) and biological treatment processes (ENVE5502). Dr. Becker has a Ph.D. in environmental engineering from Northwestern University and environmental engineering degrees from Michigan Tech and the University of Illinois at Urbana. She was previously an Associate Professor at the University of Maryland and is the recipient of several national awards including: the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers (PECASE); National Science Foundation CAREER Award; Water Environment Federation (WEF) Robert A. Canham Award; and the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors (AEESP)/Montgomery Watson Harza Master's Thesis Award (both as an advisor and as a student). She is also a member of Michigan Tech's Presidential Council of Alumnae. Dr. Becker has been the Principal Investigator on nearly $1 Million of sponsored research, and her peer-reviewed papers have been published in Environmental Science & Technology, Applied and Environmental Microbiology, Biotechnology and Bioengineering, and other scientific and engineering journals. Dr. Becker is a member of the American Society for Engineering Education, American Society for Microbiology, Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors, and WEF. Currently she serves as President of AEESP.